7 Mind-Blowing Facts That We've Learned From The Solar System In The Year 2016

In 2016, we have come across numerous fascinating facts related to our very own solar system. Those facts have undoubtedly bolstered a number of theories for us. In this article, we have highlighted a few such facts that we have seen in 2016.

1. Comets are hurled in our way from Jupiter and Saturn

Previously, we used to believe in things like some sort of a “Jupiter Shield.” It’s believed that Jupiter sucks the majority of comet threats due to its large gravitational field and keeps them at bay from Earth’s orbit. That belief is considered faulty in 2016.

In fact, it’s seen that the opposite of gravity shield is actually true. Planets like Jupiter and Saturn probably hurl space debris in our very own way.

2. Liquid water is present on Pluto

NASA’s New Horizon spaceship revealed a significant fact about our most distant relative (Pluto) in our very own solar system. Liquid water is believed to be present on Pluto. In fact, it has a liquid ocean.

The researchers came to such a conclusion from the presence of fracture lines on Pluto and also from an analysis of a creator caller Sputnik Planum on Pluto.

3. Venus was habitable once

Venus is a planet that spins in the backward direction. At 460°C, the surface of the earth is hot enough to actually melt lead. But at one point of time, Venus might have been capable of life-support.

It’s found out that over 4 billion years ago, Venus had oceans.

4. The Saturn rings are quite new

The Saturn rings have been a cause of debate for centuries. How did they come? How old are they? These are all very common questions linked with that of Saturn rings. In theory, Saturn is believed to have more moons than the ones it has currently. Some of these moons actually crashed into one another resulting in the formation of debris. Such debris form the current Saturn rings.

5. The Earth’s powered to a certain extent by the moon

The magnetic field present around the Earth protects us from harmful radiation and charged particles. In its absence, we would have been exposed to harmful cosmic rays having 1000 times more power than the ones reaching us presently. All our electronic systems would have been fried in a matter of minutes if such things happen in any day whatsoever.

6. We have 15,000 gigantic asteroids in our neighborhood

In 2005, NASA was given the task of finding gigantic NEOs (near-earth objects). They were expected to complete the work by 2020.

7. Mercury is believed to have a super grand canyon

Volcanic activities used to occur on Mercury and Venus even a few million years ago. But that activity ceased to a certain extent. The planet began to shrink, got cooled down further and also started to buckle.

Such change in the planet resulted in the formation of massive fissures on the planet which is commonly referred to as the “great valley” by the scientists.

Hope you had a good read. With that we’ll bring this article to a close.

Sudipto Das

Sudipto writes technical and educational content periodically for wizert.com and backs it up with extensive research and relevant examples. He's an avid reader and a tech enthusiast at the same time with a little bit of “Arsenal Football Club” thrown in as well. He's got a B.Tech in Electronics and Instrumentation.
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